'Oh shit!' Tory sprang to her feet. She'd never considered this. 'The gene would've had to have been activated before each of them bred, but, holy Goddess ...

there could be thousands of us!'

'Or, at least, six,' agreed Noah calmly. 'So what if Doc Alexander is one of them?'

Tory gasped. 'If he's telepathic ...!' She paused, too horrified to voice her mind at once. 'When I touched him yesterday, Ray was almost certainly foremost in my mind, knowing he was hiding from the ICA.'

'So, you think we have a case for suspicion?' Noah sought confirmation.

'Aye, I believe we do.'

6.

WORLDS APART.

The next day, when Ray had recovered a little, all on board the Goddess met in the rec-room for a major confessional.

As it turned out, Ray's suitcase held the only record of his work on the super-computer for the ICA's new fusion reactors, and chances were, the ICA would try and retrieve these documents. Not that it would do them any good as Ray planned to erase the relevant information from his computer and burn all his notes pertaining to the project.

John Pearce, at fifty-nine years old, did not feel young enough to be taking on the powers-that-be.

Miles' sudden death had him spooked and suspicious.

Jenny, although she loved the rig, the project and the company, could not bring herself to endanger the life of her only son. She had to agree with her husband - they must leave. Nicholas, of course, insisted he wasn't going anywhere. Yet he knew, eighteen or not, Tory and Brian would not let him stay without his parents'

consent.

Naomi knew the rig rather well these days and, although she was concerned about how the present circumstances might affect her son, she firmly believed there was no safer place for them than on board the Goddess. Brian would never leave Tory, and Naomi would not leave Brian; thus, they would stay.

This went double for Teo. Tory, Brian and Teo had been a team since high school, and he wasn't about to change that now.

Ray had little choice in the matter, which left Noah. As he'd only just managed to scam the job, and there was a major story to be had, Noah wasn't going anywhere.

John Pearce and his family parted ways with the Goddess and her crew in Horta. After sixteen years of working together as a team, this was not an easy goodbye for any of them.

Nicholas was quietly rebellious, insisting they would all be seeing him again soon. Jenny and Tory could barely look at each other without bursting into tears, which made words a little difficult. They had become firm friends in the twentieth century, just as they had in the sixth. Tory would miss Jenny's company every bit as much as she missed Jenovefa's. They gave up trying to express their farewells in the end, and just said it with a hug.

'Goodbye, John.' Tory shook his hand.

'Your secrets are safe with me,' he assured her.

Tory gave him the old chug on the shoulder. 'Well, who'd believe you, anyway?'

Pearce smiled, and thought how much this strange woman had opened his mind of late. 'Don't go changing.' He winked at her, and followed his family down the pier.

The mighty submersible left port that same day, fully stocked.

John didn't realise it, as he watched her disappear out to sea, but he would never see, nor hear of, the Goddess or her crew again.

Tory only slept out of habit, and even then it was more like meditation than sleep. Tonight, she could not relax and concentrate long enough to even do that. She needed to talk with someone - someone old and wise.

Naturally, her father was the first person who sprang to mind.

She found the Merlin sitting on a throne-like chair inside his cave at Dinas Emrys, chatting with an old owl friend of his.

'Hello.' Myrddin acknowledged his daughter's entrance. 'Tobias seems to think the world is coming to an end. What do you think?'

'Not if I can help it.' Tory bowed slightly to the owl as she challenged his view.

'Hey-ho, it sounds like she's on another quest.' Her father uttered an aside to the bird. 'And I suppose you're requiring my assistance.' He casually polished his fingernails against his robes.

'I need to know the position of the solar system and planets around the time Absalom was nearing the end of his reign in Atlantis.' She raised her brow hopefully.

'Whatever for?'

Tory rolled her eyes, thinking it obvious. 'So I can go back there, of course.'

'Well, you could just take the chariot, like you did last time.' He motioned in its general direction.

'But I thought I'd destroyed it!' This was good news, indeed.

'So why are you going back to the Old Land?' He turned in his seat to view her. 'Didn't you cause enough trouble last time you were there?' The Merlin chuckled and the owl thought it was rather a hoot, too.

Tory opened the nose cone of the vehicle to check out the inner circuitry, ignoring them both. 'I'm going to make some slight modifications to the Goddess.' She peered into the belly of the chariot. 'So I'll need something to barter in exchange for their technology.'

'Don't be silly, of course you won't.' The Merlin waved it off. 'You're a Goddess for heavens' sake! They shall supply you with whatever you need, just as before.'

'And if they don't.'

'They will.' He leant back in his chair. 'The Shu Sar Absalom is a past incarnation of mine, so I shall see to it personally.'

'Dad?' Tory spotted the crystal that was the heart of the time-chariot's drive system. She'd completely shattered this irreplaceable piece after her last journey through time, yet it was now perfectly intact. 'Where did you get the quasi-crystal?'

'I have a supplier in the Fourth Dimension who gets them for me.'

'What?' Tory sat back on her haunches, hands on hips. 'Are you telling me you made me time travel without a vehicle on purpose!'

'Well, I was curious to see if it could be done ... and you came out of it alright.'

'Yes, but I could have been caught in a time-warp, or another dimension, or -'

'But you weren't, were you darling?' Myrddin absentmindedly rubbed the bridge of his nose. 'Besides, at the time, I wanted my transport back! Having now done all the exploring I care to at present, you may take it if you wish.'

Tory went quiet and Myrddin knew there was something playing on her mind. 'What is it?'

'The ET gene you spoke of last time we met?'

'What of it?' he urged impatiently.

'Well, I know Rhun inherited it.'

Rhun was Tory's first child, born to Maelgwn in the sixth century. He'd been left to rule Gwynedd when Tory had departed for the twentieth century.

'And the gene was activated before he had his son, Cadwell; therefore, Cadwell must be immortal.' She stood, and slowly began to pace.

'Yes.' The Merlin smiled. 'But, your question?'

'Do you know how many of my descendants inherited this gene in its active state?'

'Well ...' His face became long and drawn as he considered the question. 'I can't say I ever wondered. I never pay a lot of attention to the past or future - they always change so much, according to what inter-dimensional reality one is living in at the time. But I guess it would depend on whether or not, in this particular dimension, Cadwell was killed before or after he had children.'

'Tell me something I don't know.' Tory swept her long fair hair back off her face. 'Okay.' She decided to take another tack. 'If the gene had been passed along, say, for five or six generations, might these other immortals have the same talents as I do?'

'Perhaps ...' He was a little vague at first. 'Psychic ability is as varied as its third plane counterparts - creative talents, great sporting achievements, or unusual mental abilities. Therefore, it depends on what area one has developed and what kind of belief structure one has.'

The Merlin sat forward, motioning Tory to come and sit before him. 'With you, movement has been vital, teleportation through time and space ... so you developed psychokinesis, and that is your forte. Along with telepathy which you learnt from Taliesin and myself, and have in turn passed on to Rhiannon. But for other immortals perhaps shape-shifting and shamanism is more what is required to fulfil their role in the scheme of things, or channelling, healing, prophecy, extra-terrestrial communication, and so forth. What any individual is capable of rests entirely upon what he or she believes is possible. Most would not attempt the feats you perform, as they consider such metamorphosis impossible. You, however, do not, as you have seen it done.'

'But what if not all these immortals were using these talents for the common good?'

'Then ...' he raised both brows, 'those in question could not have developed beyond the third level of awareness. That is ... the realm of psychology and thought. At this early stage of spirituality, one still believes the mind is the supreme device. One can hardly be aided by the higher realms of the superconscious if one doesn't believe they exist. One's ability could only develop akin to the limitations of third dimensional existence.'

Tory took a deep breath. 'So, beyond what is usually considered as normal human activity, what could such an individual be capable of?'

Her father frowned; he didn't like contemplating such things. 'Telepathy would be possible, but only through touch ... possibly even hypnosis and mind manipulation for the purpose of disguise. But not teleportation or time travel, as that requires fourth dimensional intervention.

In other words, you'd have to have a being that resides on the fourth dimension or beyond it assisting you, just as Keridwen aids you. However ...'

'What?' Tory pleaded for him to share his thought.

'One might be able to view the past through one's numerous incarnations, perhaps even assume wilful control of them for a time. But it would take a very disciplined mind indeed.'

'I see.' Tory committed the information to memory.

She had seen Maelgwn execute such a feat once; he'd gained control over Miles' body in the twentieth century, leaving his body in the sixth.

'Tory.' Myrddin was concerned by his daughter's grave expression. 'I feel sure that as long as there were immortals in Gwynedd's royal line, Taliesin would have been there to take them under his wing. The High Merlin would never leave such a powerful force to just wander astray.'

'I suppose.' She hoped he was right.

But what if Taliesin had overlooked a couple somehow? The last of Maelgwn's descendants, Cadwaladr, disappeared somewhere in the middle of the eighth century, but there wasn't any mention in history texts of Taliesin after the sixth.

Upon Tory's return to the Goddess she went straight to see Ray. Three o'clock in the morning was an odd hour to be paying a visit, but she'd been seized by a sense of urgency she couldn't shake. Nearing his cabin, she was a little bemused to hear Rhiannon's laughter coming from within. Tory hesitated to disturb them at first, but then gave a timid knock.

'Come in.' Ray didn't bother to inquire as to who it was. But Tory wanted to make sure he knew.

'It's me, Tory.'

'Well, don't be shy.' The door opened and Ray invited her in to join Rhiannon and himself, both still up drinking coffee and chatting. Tory stayed in the doorway. 'Hold on a minute, you didn't think we were ...?' Ray gave half a laugh. 'Jesus, Tory. I'm nearly old enough to be her father.'

'Yes, really mother.' Rhiannon raised herself to go to bed. 'I do like my men to at least be in one piece.'

Rhiannon served Ray a sweet grin as she slipped herself between him and her mother.

The engineer cringed as he watched the girl disappear down the corridor. 'I think I might have offended her.'

'I think you might be right. Can we talk?'

'In my room! Do think that's safe?' He grinned, although his facial bruises were still ailing him.

'Perfectly.' She entered.

Ray closed the door behind her.

'How are you feeling?' Tory sat on the only chair in the tiny sleeping quarters, so Ray took a seat opposite her on the bed.

'Pearce patched me up pretty good. Most of the swelling has gone now, so it actually looks worse than it feels.'

'Do you feel up to a little trip?'

'With you?'

Tory nodded.

'Sure.' He shrugged, as if he wasn't at all excited by the notion. 'Where are we going?'

Tory hesitated a moment to evaluate just how much of her plan Ray could cope with at once. 'I want to take you to meet an old friend of mine. I believe he might be able to teach you a thing or two that could be very beneficial to our future protection.'

'In what way?' He was curious, as there were few in his chosen field more scientifically up to date or experienced than himself.

'I want to modify this ship,' she informed him plainly.

Ray shrugged, wearing a confident grin. 'I really don't think I'd need any help to do that. What did you have in mind?'

'I want land and air capabilities, and a complete sight and sound cloaking system.'

Ray nearly choked on his smile. 'Whoa there! In five hundred years, perhaps?'

'See, I told you, you need to meet my friend.' She gave him a slap on the knee in fun.

But Ray did not take it thus. 'If this guy's so smart, why don't you get him to do it?'

'Well, I would. Trouble is, I can neither get the Goddess to him, nor he to the Goddess.'